02-01-2013, 09:52 PM
What do we know about black people serving in the roman army?Or what is you opinion?
I tried to find if there was a similar topic in the past,but I did not find anything.It makes my angry if I encounter someone who knows nothing or only very little about roman military who speaks overconfidently if encountered with-for example black legionary in neil marshall's Centurion,that "black in the legion is such a ridiculous nonsense".
I believe that at least some blacks served in the roman army,certainly in auxilliary units but probably in the legions as well.Only their numbers were rather very small,but not because of some modern racist prejudices(which emerged in modern form only as a result of a massive slave trading from 16.cent.on),but because areas inhabited by black people were rather in longer distance from Empires frontiers or only very small area of actual direct contact for such possible recruits like egyptan borders with today's sudan region.
On the other hand I don't believe(because I don't know of any real direct evidence for it)That historical characters like Hannibal,Cleopatra or emperor Setimius Severus were black-there are really people who fanatically claim this,although often their "strongest argument" is in short-"they were from Africa,so they must be black,because what is from Africa must be black".By the way I had nothing against these people be black if they really were and I would like it if there were any a black Roman emperor.
So how strong were their numbers and what regions would probably saw them most in active service?
I tried to find if there was a similar topic in the past,but I did not find anything.It makes my angry if I encounter someone who knows nothing or only very little about roman military who speaks overconfidently if encountered with-for example black legionary in neil marshall's Centurion,that "black in the legion is such a ridiculous nonsense".
I believe that at least some blacks served in the roman army,certainly in auxilliary units but probably in the legions as well.Only their numbers were rather very small,but not because of some modern racist prejudices(which emerged in modern form only as a result of a massive slave trading from 16.cent.on),but because areas inhabited by black people were rather in longer distance from Empires frontiers or only very small area of actual direct contact for such possible recruits like egyptan borders with today's sudan region.
On the other hand I don't believe(because I don't know of any real direct evidence for it)That historical characters like Hannibal,Cleopatra or emperor Setimius Severus were black-there are really people who fanatically claim this,although often their "strongest argument" is in short-"they were from Africa,so they must be black,because what is from Africa must be black".By the way I had nothing against these people be black if they really were and I would like it if there were any a black Roman emperor.
So how strong were their numbers and what regions would probably saw them most in active service?